How to make it

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9x13-inch baking pan.

Heat the sweetened condensed milk in a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat, whisking continously to prevent scorching. When it reaches a gentle boil, continue whisking and boiling until the condensed milk just begins to turn a very light butterscotch color, about 10 minutes in all. Remove from the heat and let cool.

Cut the bread into 1-inch cubes, leaving the crust on. Peel the bananas and cut into 1/4-inch slices. Toss the bread cubes and bananas together in the buttered pan and spread them out evenly.

Add the half-and-half, eggs, cinnamon, vanilla, orange zest, a pinch of salt, and a big pinch of cayenne to the saucepan with the cooled sweetened condensed milk; whisk until thoroughly combined. Pour this custard over the bread and bananas. Press the bread down with your hands until all the bread pieces are slightly compressed and saturaed in the mixture. Dot the top of the casserole with 4 tbs of butter.

Bake in the middle of the oven until the top is golden brown, about 40 minutes.

Warm the dulce de leche or cajeta over low heat and pour over the top of the bread pudding while the pudding is hot. Prick the top surface of the pudding with a fork to allow the topping to seep down. Let the pudding rest for 10 minutes, then serve immediately.